National Treasure II: Treasure of the Underworld
by ForRent-Me-Not
Summary: Shortly after Ben and Abi’s wedding, some of the treasure is stolen from the Cairo museum. Ben travels to Cairo with Abi, Riley, and his sister Ellen. Soon, a myth unravels and an old enemy resurfaces. AB, RxOC. No angst, just fun! Please review!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Ellen. Chapter One: Riley Poole: Ladies Man 

So he wasn't a ladies man. He knew. He had just been hoping it wasn't true. But even as he attempted to wink at that cute blonde standing across the room, he knew it was hopeless. Riley Poole was just not good with women.

He was cute enough, and smart, and funny, and sweet, but he was just a bit of a… how do you say…a huge computer nerd. It was also partly because he had never really given it much thought. He always figured he was young and had plenty of time to meet a girl and get married and have a family. But over the few months after finding the treasure, he began to notice changes in Ben.

Ben had always been content with his life as a treasure – hunter, no matter how frustrated he became with the lack of support he received from his father, the government, and well, everybody. But now that Abigail was a part of his life, he not only seemed content, but happy. Riley couldn't help but notice the random smiling or the way his eyes glossed over every so often, in what Riley could only assume was reminiscing over some time spent with Abi.

And Riley could not ignore that pang he felt. It wasn't jealousy, he was truly happy for Ben and Abi. But it was a pang of something…. Not regret, not envy… perhaps longing? Wishing? He didn't know, nor was he too phased about it. At least he told himself not to be too phased about it. The right girl would come along at some point. Although Riley was completely unprepared when she came along into his life a lot faster and in a way he never could have anticipated.

Long story short, that cute blonde gave him a funny look and walked away.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Knives 

Dinner at Patrick Gates' house got less and less weird every time. At first, Riley wasn't sure where he fit into the picture. There was Mr. Gates, Ben his son, Abi the girlfriend, and then - Riley. Patrick Gates began to randomly call Ben, Abi, and Riley for dinner together at his home in Pennsylvania. It was the fifth dinner that held a surprise. Well, two surprises, actually.

Riley arrived promptly at 6 as he was instructed. Ben's car was already in the driveway, behind another car Riley didn't recognize. Wondering if Mr. Gates had gotten a new car, Riley walked up the front door and rang the bell. Mr. Gates answered.

'For the millionth time, Riley, you can just come in!' Mr. Gates said with a smile.

'I know, I know, but it still feels weird to just walk in,' Riley explained as Mr. Gates ushered him inside. As it was a brisk day in August, Patrick Gates took Riley's coat and hung it up in the closet.

'So, do you know anything about this big news Ben and Abi have?' Mr. Gates asked.

'News? What news? I don't know anything about news,' Riley said.

'I don't know anything either. They just said they wanted everyone here because they had some big news. Which is why I even got Ellen to stop by. She's been extra busy with the school year starting so she hasn't come until tonight.'

'Ellen?' Riley asked, vaguely recognizing, but not placing the name. 'Who's Ell-?'

'Riley! You're here!' exclaimed a happier than usual Ben, interrupting Riley's question.

'Ben! Hi,' Riley said, a bit startled.

'Good, that's everyone. Come on, come in!' Ben said, pulling Riley into the dining room.

Riley immediately noticed five places at the table and was confused for the tiniest of moments, until he remembered this 'Ellen' was here. Loud laughter came from the kitchen and Riley recognized Abi's laugh, but not the other, which meant it had to be Ellen. He was surprised to find himself smiling ever so slightly at the sound but not knowing why.

'Is that everything?' Mr. Gates asked as he examined the table.

'Knives,' Ben said. 'We don't have knives out.'

'I'll get them,' Riley volunteered, as he was standing next to the door.

As he went to swing the door in, Abi swung it out, and there was a minor collision. They both stumbled backward, laughing.

'Sorry, Abi,' Riley said, as he held the door for her.

'Thanks, Riley,' Abi said with a bigger than usual smile on her face.

Riley was beginning to think he knew what was going on when he walked into the kitchen and completely forgot about it.

In front of the stove across from him stood a woman. She was of medium height, and had long, brown hair that hung past her shoulders. At the moment, she was facing away from Riley, which gave Riley a moment to see she had a rather nice… bottom.

The next moment she turned around and Riley was, as they say, hit with the lighting bolt. He physically felt his mouth drop open slightly as he first set eyes on Ellen. She had a heart shaped face, with gorgeous, big brown eyes. Her slim, yet curvy figure was outlined by the apron she had tied around her small waist. From under the white apron, he saw she wore jeans and black heels.

'You must be Riley!' she said with a smile. Riley was silent for a moment.

'Kn - knives,' he finally said.

She raised her eyebrows slightly, trying to ignore the sudden pang she felt as she looked at him.

'What?'

'Knives. I mean, yes, yes, I'm Riley. Sorry,' he said, terrified that he had _already_ embarrassed himself.

'Good to meet you, Riley,' she stuck out her hand to him. 'I'm Ellen, Ben's sister.'

'Oh, okay,' Riley said, silently cursing Ben for having an attractive sister.

There was silence for a few moments as they both tried to figure out what these sudden feelings were.

'Knives?' Ellen finally asked.

'Knives?' Riley asked, wondering what she meant. Then it hit him. 'Knives! Yeah, I was sent in here for knives.'

'Oh,' Ellen said. Realizing he wasn't moving she asked, 'Do you know where they -?

'Right, yeah, I know where they…' Riley trailed off as he finally got his legs to move and carry him to the utensil drawer.

Ellen stared after him. She had heard about Riley. He had been a big help to her brother and had been with him throughout the whole treasure hunt. Ben couldn't stop singing his praises to Ellen, with the occasional hint that she and Riley were just about the same age and were both currently single. Ellen admitted she hadn't given it much thought at the time, figuring Ben was just being a pushy older brother. But now that Ellen had met Riley, she wished she had paid Ben more heed.

He was cute, she had to admit. He seemed to be goofy, but it was about time Ellen had a guy with a sense of humor. Ben certainly thought very highly of him. He was definitely smart, and Ellen was willing to overlook the computer geekness because as he was turned away from her getting out knives, she had a chance to notice he had a nice… rear.

Ellen shook her head at herself and turned back to the stove. After putting on oven mitts, she picked up a pan from the stovetop and turned towards the door. Riley got there just before her and held the door open for her.

'Thanks!' she said, smiling at him.

'You're – uh- wel – m,' Riley mumbled.

Ellen's smile faltered ever so slightly as she tried to figure out what exactly he said.

'Okay,' she replied and walked to the table.

Riley mentally kicked himself.

------------------------------------------------------

Dinner went well. There was light talk about various topics. Ben asked Ellen how her work was going. Riley was interested to know what it was she did, and was not at all surprised that she taught high school history. Ellen had been busy over the last couple weeks preparing for the coming school year, so she had to turn down her father's offers for dinner, but made time tonight for the announcement. Which brought the conversation back to the 'big news', which Abi quickly turned it away from by asking Patrick Gates about his new involvement with the Smithsonian.

After dinner was finished and cleared away, they made their way into the living room where Mr. Gates passed around drinks. The topic could no longer be avoided and Ellen brought it up.

'So, come on, what is this news?' she asked.

Abi and Ben exchanged glances and nodded at each other.

Ben's smile faded a bit as he said, 'now, it's not what you think.'

Ellen, Riley, and Mr. Gates exchanged slightly worried glances.

'Well, what is it?' Mr. Gates asked.

Abi and Ben looked at each other again, and Abi burst into a smile.

'It's exactly what you're thinking! We're getting married!' she shouted.

The men all jumped as the two women jumped up, started to scream and immediately hugged each other while still jumping and screaming.

Hugs, handshakes and kisses went around, all with a steady soundtrack of screaming in the background. There was a slightly odd moment where Ellen threw her arms around Riley's neck and kissed him on the check. Well, it was odd to Riley; Ellen didn't seem to notice anything as she went straight for Abi again.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: Potential for a Man! 

At 11:00 everyone seemed to conk out. There had been much excitement and much celebration over the previous few hours. Abi took out her engagement ring and upon Ellen's declaration of how beautiful it was Ben admitted that he did not pick it out himself. It was beautiful and simple and elegant. Ellen smiled every time she noticed Abi look down at it and smile to herself.

'Well, I think we had better head back,' Ben said as he and Abi stood up. 'Don't forget, Riley, we're meeting Dr. Stewart at 10 tomorrow.'

Riley scrunched up his face in a grimace.

'Yeah, I remember, but I was hoping you would forget.'

Mr. Gates gave him a questioning look.

Ben began to explain. 'Dr. Stewart is the new curator for the Cairo Museum and he wants to meet with Riley and I to discuss changes for the treasure exhibit.'

'What's wrong with that?' Ellen asked.

'Dr. Stewart is… well…' Riley said. 'He's a nice enough man, he's just really, really, really, REALLY boring. And he likes to tell two - minute stories in an hour. We'll be there, what, all day?' he asked Ben.

'If we're lucky.'

There were more hugs, handshakes, and kisses as coats were passed out and everyone got ready to leave. After seeing Ben help Abi into her coat, Riley decided to give it a try. He held Ellen's coat open for her. She went to take it then realized what he was doing.

'Oh, thanks Riley,' she said as she turned and pulled on her jacket. Riley caught a slightly suspicious glance from Ben and was slightly frightened, but Mr. Gates intervened as he gave Ellen one last hug.

'Now stop being such a stranger around here, young lady,' he told her.

She smiled up at him.

'I know, I'm sorry Dad. I'll be better, I promise.'

'Good girl,' he said with a smile at his only daughter.

Mr. Gates stood at the door as Ben, Abi, Ellen and Riley made their way to their cars. Ellen stopped Riley by her car as Ben and Abi walked further down the driveway. Ben opened the door for Abi then glanced up with a questioning look at them.

'We're fine, you go on!' Ellen said cheerfully.

Ben hesitated for the slightest of moments. Riley saw Abi roll her eyes at Ben in the car and he wondered what was going on. Did he miss something?

'Okay. Drive safely, you two,' Ben said as he walked around the front of the car to the driver's seat.

'We will,' Ellen called back. She and Riley waved as Ben and Abi left. Ellen turned back to Riley.

'Okay, so I know we just met, but Ben's all 'Riley this and Riley that' so I feel like I've known you forever and I really need another drink and I don't want to go by myself because that would be sad for me and a girl shouldn't go drinking by herself anyway, so do you want to come with me? Please?' she said. Riley gaped at her for a second trying to understand all of what had said in that one sentence. Ellen started doing this hopping swaying thing Riley could only assume was her version of begging him to go with her. Riley couldn't help but smile and laugh the tiniest bit. He had to admit she was cute.

'I think you asked me to go get a drink with you… right? Am I right?' he asked.

She laughed. He smiled at the sound. 'Yeah. I mean if you don't mind. Don't feel like you have to go or anything.'

He smiled even more broadly. 'I would love to,' he honestly said.

'Great,' Ellen replied, a huge smile on her face. 'Follow me.'

---------------------------------------------------------

'What was that back there?'

'What was what?'

'That… little meeting in the driveway. Is there something I need to know about Riley and my sister?'

'Oh, there's potential for a man and suddenly she's '_my sister_''?

'Potential for a man?'! Ben exclaimed.

'Ben, calm down. It's not like they're together yet or anything,' Abi replied, slightly amused at Ben's reaction to the tiniest of hints of a relationship between Riley and Ellen. Abi herself thought that they would make a wonderful couple and had told Ellen that on several occasions.

'What do you mean 'it's not like they're together _yet_!'?'

'Ben, they're probably just going to go out and get a drink or something. They're too young to go home at 11 on a Saturday night,' Abi reasoned. Upon noticing Ben's slight agitation, she continued. 'They just met after hearing about each other for a long time. They probably want to get to know each other. Hang out together. And besides, who better to accompany your sister for a drink on a Saturday night than Riley?'

Ben had to admit she had a point. 'Yeah, that's true. He's much better than the last guy, what was his name? John? Bob? Tom?'

'Steve.'

'Whatever, Ellen can do better.'

'Riley's better.'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

'Nothing,' Abi said, smiling to herself. 'At least you know Ellen will make it home safely. Riley won't let anything happen to her.'

Ben noticeably relaxed as he realized that Abi was right. In true older brother fashion, he worried about Ellen all the time and wanted to protect her against anything that might hurt her. At the same time he knew Ellen was a strong, independent woman that could easily take care of herself, but Ben was still worried that something could happen to her. And if neither he nor his father could be there to look after her, the only other person in the world he trusted with his sister was Riley. As long as Riley was with her, no incident like that one that happened before would happen again.

'I know what you're thinking about,' Abi said, noticing the frown on Ben's face.

'Huh?'

'Ben. You're thinking about that time with that guy, Alan – '

'Yeah. I am.'

'Ben, Ellen is with _Riley_. Do you really think Riley is going to let anything like that happen to her while he's with her?'

'I know, I know, you're right. I trust Riley,' Ben said, relaxing completely. Ben trusted Riley with his life, but more importantly, he trusted him with the lives of those he cared about most in the world.

As it turned out, Riley would prove Ben right. Riley could indeed protect Ellen.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Warning: There is brief, yet very crude language in this chapter.**_

Chapter Four: Dan the Man

Riley and Ellen took seats at the bar.

'Well, back again, Miss Gates?' the bartender asked from down the bar.

'Yeah…' Ellen smiled at him.

'Come here often?' Riley murmured to her.

'No,' she replied. Riley raised his eyebrows at her. 'Okay, so I've been here a few times over the past few weeks, but I've got a good excuse.'

'Oh, really?'

'What'll it be, kids?' the bartender asked them as he approached. 'Same for you, Miss Gates?'

'No, I think I'll try something different. How about a screwdriver?' Ellen replied.

'And for you, sir?'

'Uh… black and tan?'

'No problem,' the bartender replied.

'Black and tan, eh? Sophisticated,' Ellen said.

'Well, two drinks is better than one,' Riley said.

Ellen laughed, and Riley once again smiled at the sound.

'So, why do you so desperately need another drink tonight?' he asked her.

Ellen winced and took a breath to speak but was saved by the bartender bringing their drinks.

'Thank you,' she said. She raised her glass to Riley. He raised his to her.

'What are we drinking to?' he asked her. She thought for a moment.

'To… to days of inspiration.'

They chinked glasses but Riley looked confused.

'What?'

'Have you seen 'RENT?'

'No.'

'Then never mind,' Ellen said as took a rather long swig of her drink. Riley raised his eyebrows at the sight but shrugged it off as he took a drink. 'Okay, so the reason I need a drink? I kinda got out of a bad relationship not too long ago.'

Riley nodded. 'How bad?'

'Really bad… let's just say I haven't told Ben everything that happened because if I did, said ex-boyfriend would be dead.'

Riley paused for a moment, wondering how to phrase his next question.

'He didn't like, he didn't um… do anything to you, right?'

Ellen looked a bit confused, so Riley continued.

'He didn't… hurt you, or anything, right?'

'Oh no. No, no, no. Well, not physically.'

She saw him visibly sigh in relief, and she smiled to herself.

'I'm guessing he hurt you in other ways?'

'Yeah, well, we dated for almost a year and a half, and for the last year we were together he had been cheating on me.'

'How nice of him,' Riley said, feeling himself getting rather angry at this guy, despite the fact he had no idea who he even was.

'That's not even the worst of it.'

'It's not?'

'No. The worst part is that he was cheating on me… with my best friend at the time.'

'Ouch.'

'No kidding. I walked in on them having… well… relations.'

Riley winced at her. She nodded grimly and took another swig of her drink.

'She ran after me when I walked out the door,' Ellen continued. 'She started making up excuses and I just wasn't in the mood to listen to it, so I punched her and stormed out.'

'You punched her?' Riley asked, a little surprised.

'Of course. That bitch,' Ellen's normally friendly face scrunched up in anger at the memory.

'They went behind your back for a year?'

'Yep.'

'And didn't have any plans to tell you?'

'Nope. Needless to say, I went back to his place, took anything that was mine out of it along with some of his stuff.'

'Like what?'

'I took his iPod charger, his razor and his television remote.'

Riley paused. 'His iPod charger, razor and remote?'

'Yeah. He was obsessed with his iPod so I took his charger. He was also obsessed with keeping his look _perfect_ so I took his razor. That got annoying after a very short time, but I overlooked it because he was rather attractive and _did_ look bad with facial hair.' (Riley had a momentary panic when he thought that maybe she didn't like facial hair. He decided to shave the next morning. Wait, but she took his razor…) 'And I took his remote because it's really annoying when you can't find it.'

'Makes sense.'

'You don't think I went too far, do you?'

Riley's eyebrows shot up in response. 'Too far! If anything, you didn't go far enough! That guy deserves that and more. He's an idiot. A self-absorbed, cheating, idiot jerk.'

'Wow. Do you know him?' Ellen said with a smile.

Riley smiled back. 'No. Good thing too. Because if I did…' Riley shook his fist a little and put on an angry face. Ellen laughed, which wasn't exactly the response Riley thought she would give.

'What are you laughing at?'

'You!' She shook her fist, mocking him.

'What? I would probably punch the guy.'

'Really? You would hit my ex-boyfriend because he cheated on me?'

'Well, I would definitely do something.'

'Riley, you just met me and already you're swinging to my defense?'

'So? He deserves a lot worse.'

Riley paused as Ellen got an odd look on her face. She looked like she was about to cry. Riley panicked. _Oh God, she's going to cry! What do I do! What do I do!_

'Oh, Riley. You're sweet,' she said, smiling at him.

Riley looked confused as he said, 'Uh, thanks.'

They continued looking at each other for a moment. Riley still looking confused, Ellen still smiling teary-eyed at him. Then she laughed again and took a drink.

'Riley, if only every guy in the world was like you, the world would be a better place.'

'What? Really?' he said.

'Yeah,' she said, looking at him. She smiled again, but it was a different smile than Riley had seen before. They held each other's gazes for a few moments. It seemed their heads were going a mile a minute, yet neither of them were thinking of anything.

Ellen finally broke the silence.

'Riley, thanks for coming out with me tonight. I would probably be sitting here, by myself and crying if you weren't here.'

Riley shrugged. 'It's nothing.'

They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Ellen felt herself slowly being more and more drawn to Riley. She kept thinking of that sudden twinge she felt when she first met him. She had felt that before with guys, but never had she felt it so strongly or quickly as she did with Riley. Ellen felt so comfortable with him she had told him something she hadn't even told Ben. She remembered the 'knives' incident in the kitchen and smiled to herself. Unfortunately, a rather slimy looking guy sitting across the bar thought that she was smiling at him.

Ellen's thoughts were interrupted as she finally noticed the guy sitting across from her. He began to wink at her and point to himself, then her, then the door. Ellen furrowed her brow in confusion, wondering if that guy was indicating her. He jerked his head towards the door then puckered his lips up to her. Ellen looked away, trying not to laugh.

'Riley,' she whispered. He turned to her. 'Do you see that kinda creepy guy sitting across the bar?' Riley glanced up and then nodded to her. 'Is he looking over here?'

'He was for a second but he's gone back to his drink,' Riley replied as a thought suddenly occurred to him. 'That's not your ex, is it!'

'No!' Ellen shook her head. 'But I think he's hitting on me. He keeps looking over here and winking.'

Riley looked back up at the guy just as he looked back to Ellen and made that ridiculous kissey face again. Ellen snickered a little to herself and looked away. That guy just didn't have the right approach. She looked over at Riley and was surprised to see him glaring at the guy.

'Riley?' she asked slowly.

'Hm?' he said, still glaring at him.

'Riley, are you okay? You look really angry. It's not that big of a deal. He's just-' Ellen started, but Riley cut her off.

'What, he assumes you're here alone? I'm clearly sitting next to you and we've been talking to each other this whole time, and he assumes you're here alone?'

'What are you talking about, Riley?'

'He thinks a guy like me couldn't be with a hot girl at a bar?'

Ellen's mouth opened in surprise. She suppressed a smile as she said, 'Riley, I'm sure that's not what he's thinking.'

'Yeah, well, he's got another thing coming - ' he stopped suddenly. During their discussion, the guy had gotten up and walked over to Ellen. He leaned an elbow on the bar and attempted to smile slyly at her.

Ellen turned around and quickly looked away, hoping he would just go away.

'So… you come here often?'

Ellen bit her lip to keep from laughing. _Really? He's going to use that line?_ She looked at Riley who was merely staring at the guy, his face reflecting her thoughts.

Realizing he wasn't going away, Ellen turned back to him.

'Uh, no,' she said abruptly and turned back to Riley.

'My name's Dan. It's a shame that such a pretty girl is here at a bar by herself.'

'She's not here by her – ' Riley began but the guy cut him off.

'Excuse me, I was talking to the lady.'

Riley's eyes narrowed and Ellen quickly turned to the creepo again.

'Look, I'm not here by myself. I'm with him,' she said, indicating Riley.

'Yeah, so if you wouldn't mind going back to your side of the bar and leaving us alone, that would be great,' Riley added.

Dan looked from Ellen to Riley and back to Ellen.

'Wait, you're here with him?' he said incredulously.

'Is that so hard to believe?' Riley asked.

Dan looked at Riley for a moment. Then he turned his attention back to Ellen and, after checking her out head to toe, he snorted.

'Seems like a waste to me,' he said.

Ellen was surprised when she saw Riley begin to stand up. She quickly held up her hand to him to stop him. Then she turned back to Dan.

'Look, I don't care what you think. Just please leave me alone. I'm not interested.'

'Maybe you should _get_ interested,' he said, a bit more forcefully than Ellen expected. He stepped closer to her. She looked at him in disbelief. Normally, confrontations like this did not make her nervous, but this guy was not leaving and was just making her more and more uncomfortable. He reached out his hand and gripped her arm. Before she could think of anything to say, Riley had stood up and stepped in between them.

'I think you should leave,' Riley said, just as forcefully, ripping Dan's hand off of Ellen.

'I'll leave when I want.'

There was a standoff. Neither man moved. Ellen put her hand on Riley's arm, trying to pull him back, but he wouldn't move.

By now a few people in the bar had realized what was going on. Even the bartender was staring at them. He didn't want trouble, but that guy had been in here before harassing women. The bartender secretly hoped he would get what was coming to him.

Finally Dan spoke. 'I would think that she would want to be with a guy who could really bang her, you know? I doubt you deliver,' he said to Riley with a smirk.

Ellen's mouth dropped open and she covered it with her hand in shock. The bartender almost dropped the glass he was holding, and two women down the bar gasped.

Ellen looked at Riley, but before she got a chance to read his face, he pulled back his arm and punched Dan right in the jaw. He flung into the bar and held onto the edge, keeping himself upright. His mouth was bleeding and he looked up at Riley in disbelief.

'You little bastard!' he yelled as he lunged at Riley. However, Riley was prepared and merely stepped out of the way. Dan flung himself into the edge of a table, hitting his head on the corner. Several people who had seen the altercation unfold laughed. Apparently this made him even angrier as he yet again lunged at Riley. Riley might have been a little shorter than Dan, but Riley was stronger than he looked, and he was fast. Riley sidestepped Dan, while grabbing his wrist. He spun him around until he had him pinned against the bar, twisting his arm around his back. Dan swung his free arm around, and did manage to hit Riley in the face once. Riley merely let go of him, which Dan wasn't expecting, so he fell to the floor. By now every single person in the place was watching. Dan stood up to keep fighting. Riley had planned to keep fighting him but the bartender had run out from behind the bar and intervened.

He turned to Dan. 'Look, I've had enough of you in here harassing women. I never want to see you in here again.' He pointed towards the door. Dan stood up, wiped his mouth off and glared at Riley. Riley merely glared back.

'You missed your chance, sweetheart,' Dan said to Ellen.

'I'll live,' she said back.

With one last glare at Riley, Dan turned around and stormed out of the door.

The bartender turned to Riley.

'Finally, someone got rid of him. All your drinks, on the house!' he exclaimed to Riley and Ellen. Many people in the bar applauded as Riley took his seat again. He suddenly didn't know what to do and meagerly waved his hand in the air with a small smile on his face.

The applause died down, and talk amongst everyone began again. Music started up again from somewhere and Riley and Ellen were left to each other. Riley hesitatingly looked over at Ellen. She had an odd look on her face again. Then she smiled, but it was a smile Riley had never seen before. She picked up a napkin from the bar and handed it to Riley.

'Your mouth's bleeding,' she said, with the look still on her face.

'Thanks,' Riley said, taking the napkin and dabbing at the bleeding corner of his mouth. _What does that look on her face mean? Is she somehow mad about what just happened? How could she get mad about that! Maybe she really doesn't like violence?_ A million questions went through Riley's head as he finished wiping the blood from his mouth.

'Do you want to leave?' Ellen asked.

Riley was caught a bit off guard, but said sure. The bartender thanked him again profusely, and shook his head as Riley reached for his wallet.

'For what you did, you and Miss Gates are free to come back anytime and anything you want is on the house.'

Riley and Ellen smiled at him.

'Thanks,' Riley said.

They walked out of the bar and walked in awkward silence to where their cars were parked side by side. They stopped in between their cars.

'Ellen – ' Riley began. But before he could get anything else out, Ellen threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder. Riley was completely thrown off. He didn't know what to do, so he put his arms around her and just held her. He had to admit he liked the feel of her in his arms.

After a few moments, she looked up at him with a smile.

'No guy has stood up for me like that before. Thank you, Riley,' she said, looking into his eyes.

There was a pause before Riley could think of a reply. And even then, it was just a shrug with a smile. Ellen beamed at him and Riley unconsciously tightened his arms around her. She brought her hand to his mouth.

'You didn't get too hurt, did you?' she asked with a wince as she gently touched the corner of his mouth.

'No,' Riley said. 'I've had worse.

'Yeah?' she asked.

Riley thought for a moment, but couldn't really think of a time he had been in an actual fistfight.

'Probably…not…,' he said.

Ellen laughed again and buried her face in his chest. Riley suddenly had the urge to never let her go. He felt so comfortable with her in his arms. Despite the fact his mouth actually did hurt quite a bit, he felt happy.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five: Who said chivalry was dead?**

After a few minutes, they each got into their car, promising the other to call soon. Riley waited for her to leave first. He smiled to himself as he saw her start her car and immediately begin to sing along with whatever she was listening to. She looked over at him and smiled as she pulled out of the parking lot. He smiled back, then pulled out of the lot, but drove off in the opposite direction. He wasn't sure what to make of the night. Many events certainly unfolded within the space of the evening. Between Abi and Ben's engagement announcement and his random fistfight defending Ellen's honor, Riley had a big night.

As he drove home, he thought of nothing else but Ellen. He thought about her smile and her eyes, and especially her laugh. He found himself smiling at the thought of her laughing. Then he suddenly shook his head at himself. He was being an idiot. Ellen was attractive and funny and smart. And that was precisely the problem. She was wonderful. Riley had been telling himself the right girl would come along. Ellen was not only right, she was perfect. And perfect was not what Riley got. _Come off it._ He told himself. _She's way out of your league. Ok, so you had fun together tonight. But she's hot and that right there should tell you 'you don't have a chance'. Plus, there's the minor detail she's your best friend's little sister. That's _way_ off limits._ Still, Riley couldn't help but think about the way she felt in his arms. He was surprised when he realized he already missed her.

As Riley thought about how he didn't have a chance with Ellen, Ellen was thinking how long she would have to wait before Riley would ask her out. She couldn't help thinking about him her entire car ride home. She thought about his eyes and that cute smirk and his sense of humor. He had a total goofy side Ellen couldn't resist. Riley was completely opposite of every other guy Ellen had ever been with. And since clearly none of the other guys had worked out, she decided opposite was the way to go. And of course, she couldn't stop thinking about the way he had defended her. She had been hit on before in front of the guy she was with, but in all the other cases said guy just let it slide or joked around with the other guy. Not that every other guy she had dated had been a jerk, she just didn't get along with him in the end. Riley was different. She giggled a little at the thought that Riley had 'defended her honor'. Who said chivalry was dead? Ellen's thoughts drifted to the way she had felt with his arms around her. _Holy crow, I miss him already. I _just_ saw him a minute ago and I already miss him!_ She smiled at the thought and hoped he would call soon.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: Scrolls, Stones, and Ca – partments**

Riley and Ben pulled into the museum parking lot. Riley could tell that Ben wanted to ask what happened last night, but he had yet to bring it up. Which just made Riley more nervous. _He's waiting until we get back to his house. Then he can kill me without any witnesses,_ Riley thought to himself. Riley was also pretty sure Ben had noticed the slight mark by his mouth, but he didn't ask about that yet either. Which was fine by Riley. This just gave him a longer time to think about how to phrase his answers. He really had nothing to worry about. He and Ellen had merely gone out for a drink and he got in a fistfight with some guy who was bothering her. Ben would most likely be happy that Riley had taken care of Ellen. Well, maybe not _happy_ exactly…. Riley was still worried. After all, she was Ben's only sister.

They found Dr. Stewart waiting for them at the museum entrance among the visitors.

'Mr. Gates! How nice to see you again!' Stewart said as he shook Ben's hand.

'Good to see you as well, doctor,' Ben replied.

'And Mr. Poole! Nice to see you again as well!' Stewart said, shaking Riley's hand.

'You, too, Dr. Stewart,' Riley replied.

'Well, let's not dawdle, eh?' Stewart said, leading the way. Riley had to suppress a laugh. _You? Not dawdle? Whatever_ he thought to himself.

Sure enough, they had been sitting in his office for over half an hour before Stewart finally got around to the subject of the Cairo museum treasure.

'There is a slight issue with the Scrolls of Alexandria. Apparently, the museum in Athens has laid claim to them and they want the scrolls. I think that they are perfectly fine at Cairo, but the curator at Athens has recently gotten it into his head that the scrolls originated from around Athens. I'm a little worried about the young man. At first I thought he was far too young to be curator for the museum, but up till now he had proven me wrong. You know when he first took the job, the revenue of the museum rose by 7? That may not seem like a lot, but – '

Sensing Stewart had once again gone off on a tangent, Ben interrupted.

'Wait, I'm sorry doctor, but how can he claim the Scrolls from Alexandria were from Athens. Alexandria is in Egypt, therefore obviously closer to Cairo.'

'Exactly. He claims to be on the verge of proving the scrolls are not actually from Alexandria, but rather from the library at the Palace of Knossos. No one seems to be able to agree on a translation of the scrolls. But some experts agree that the scrolls have something to do with a set of chiseled stones that explain the myth of Persephone. The part of the myth they are referring to is, of course, preposterous, as there is no hidden metal in them, nor do the scrolls lead to the treasure of the underworld. Anyway, I'll need your signature saying that – '

Ben cut him off.

'I'm sorry doctor. I'm not following. What about stones and a myth and… the underworld?'

'You know, the myth of Persephone,' Stewart said as if that would explain everything.

'Yeah, Ben. You know,' Riley said.

After a quick glare at Riley, Ben said, 'Sorry, Dr. Stewart. I'm not the mythology expert in my family.'

Sudden dawning appeared on Stewart's face. 'Ah, yes, of course! I'd forgotten. Your sister is the one who knows all about mythology, am I right?' Ben nodded. 'Well, she can undoubtedly explain it better than I, but it basically says that the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, Persephone, was kidnapped by Hades and taken to the underworld.'

'So what about the stones and the metals you mentioned?' Riley asked.

'Well, some people,' Stewart's face clearly read that he did not agree with these people, 'think that there is a lost part of the myth. They believe that there was a treasure Zeus offered to Hades in return for Hades allowing Persephone to remain on earth with her mother. Hades agreed and took the treasure. However, shortly thereafter, he tricked Persephone so she would have to stay with him for six months every year. The tricking part _is_ part of the myth. However, the treasure seems to have been made up and added into the myth to tempt treasure seekers. The stones, which are real, tell the myth in its entirety. The same people who believe in the treasure believe there is metal hidden somewhere in the stones and these metals tell the whereabouts of the treasure.'

'Have there been tests to find these metals?' Ben asked.

'Of course, but they have yet to find anything. Which just adds to my belief that those people are full of it. Anyway, long story short,' (Riley rolled his eyes) 'I'll need both your signatures that say until there is proof, the scrolls must stay in Cairo.'

Stewart handed a pen to Ben and slid a piece of paper towards him. Ben read it over, but paused before signing it. Riley glanced at Ben, the paper, then Stewart. However, Stewart was paying quite a bit of attention to a paper clip he suddenly found very intriguing. Riley looked back at Ben and Ben looked up at him. He opened his mouth to say something, then thought better of it and signed the paper. Ben handed the pen to Riley and stood as the younger man quickly read it through and signed it as well.

'Well, is that all Dr. Stewart?' Ben asked. Stewart looked up, a bit surprised. Perhaps he had forgotten they were there.

'Yes, Mr. Gates. That is all for now,' Stewart said with a smile, shaking Ben's hand, then Riley's. 'Would you like me to show you out, or can you find the way?'

'I think we'll be okay on our own,' Ben replied. They nodded to each other as Ben and Riley left the office.

Neither of them said anything until they got to the parking lot.

'What was that back there?' Riley asked, referring to Ben's hesitation.

'I was just thinking. Stewart said that this is uncharacteristic for the curator at the Athens museum. And that these scrolls and stones and whatnot have to do with treasure…' he trailed off.

'Yeah. And?'

'Well, Ian was pretty angry that we took the Knight's Templar treasure from him….' Ben said.

'Wait, you're not suggesting Ian is somehow behind this?'

'Not exactly. It just seems weird to me. I'm sure it's nothing, I've just got a bad feeling about it,' Ben explained. Riley nodded to him as he climbed into Ben's car.

'That's understandable. I'm sure if Ian got the chance he would find some way to get back at us,' Riley said, somehow not finding comfort in his own words.

The two men were silent for the next few minutes, both of them lost in thought.

Suddenly Ben said, 'Ellen.'

'What? Nothing!' Riley blurted.

Ben furrowed his brow and looked over at Riley. 'What?' he asked.

'Huh?'

'What?'

'Nothing.'

Ben paused. 'Did something happen last night?'

'Nope. So, what were you going to say?' Riley said quickly.

'Uh…' Ben hesitated, not sure which path to tread first: the treasure or his sister and Riley. He decided to give Riley a false sense of security as he chose the treasure. 'I was just going to say that we should meet with Ellen. She would be able to clearly lay out the myth and what, if any, importance these scrolls and stones have.'

'Yeah, she'll know all about it,' Riley said, relaxing a little. Ben decided to have a little fun and he waited until Riley thought Ben wouldn't pursue asking what had happened the night before. Ben didn't bring it back up until they were driving down the street his house was on. By then Riley had thought Ben wouldn't ask. He was very wrong.

'So, uh, what _did_ happen last night? Where did you and Ellen go?' Ben asked in a light and casual tone of voice. Riley knew Ben was anything but light and casual when it came to Ellen. He would have to word his answers carefully.

'We just went out for a drink,' Riley replied, hoping that would be enough, yet knowing it wouldn't be.

'That's all?'

'That's all.'

'So what's that mark by your mouth?'

'Uh… I fell.'

'Really? Doing what?'

'… walking… to my… ca – partment…' Riley decided against 'car' halfway through and went with 'apartment'. Bad move.

'Walking to your what?'

Pause. 'Apartment.'

Pause. 'Riley.'

'I'm clumsy, okay?'

'Riley.'

'Okay, okay. There was this kinda creepy guy bothering Ellen and he said some not so nice things to her and grabbed her and I got into a fistfight with him,' Riley said as quickly as he could.

'What! Is Ellen okay?' Ben cried.

'Yeah, she's fine. I swear!'

By now they were in the driveway and they both got out of the car. Riley prepared to make a run for it. He could outrun Ben… right?

'Some guy grabbed her?'

'Kind of. He just grabbed her arm and said some kinda nasty things. He didn't hurt her or anything, I stopped him pretty quickly.'

Ben paused, thinking. Then he looked over at Riley with a rather odd expression on his face. _Here's an expression I've never seen before_ Riley thought. _This must be his murdering face._

Ben finally spoke. 'So you got into a fistfight defending my sister?'

Riley paused. 'Yeah….'

Ben hesitated again before smiling slightly. Riley ventured as far as smiling a little back. Neither man said anything for a few seconds. Then Ben nodded at Riley and said, 'I'll give Ellen a call and see when we can all get together so she can straighten everything out for us.'

This was not the response Riley had anticipated but he certainly wasn't going to argue with it. 'Sure. Just… let me know…' he said.

'I'll call,' Ben said, starting to turn to his house. Riley nodded and turned to his car. He half expected to hear footsteps running up behind him, and he cautiously turned slightly only to see Ben almost to his door. Riley drove his car out of the driveway a little faster than usual.

Inside the house, Ben was happy to see Abi there.

'How did it – ' she stopped when she saw his face. 'What's that look about?' Abi asked, referring to the odd smile of Ben's face.

'Nothing,' Ben said. 'Just… Riley's a good guy, right?'

Abi nodded. 'Yeah…. But what are you talking about?'

'Riley got into a fistfight defending Ellen at a bar last night.'

'What? You're kidding!'

'Nope.'

Abi smiled as she wrapped her arms around Ben's waist and looked up at him.

'See, I told you Riley was better.'

Ben smiled down at her and shrugged. 'I knew all along.'

Abi rolled her eyes. 'Yeah, whatever.'


	7. Chapter 7

_Author's Note: I have heard/read many versions of the Persephone (pronounced: per – SI – fonee) myth and I decided to write about the one in the following chapter. The 'made up part' of the myth in this story is the part I myself made up. (That will make sense after you read this) The rest of the myth is from various resources about mythology. Not much action in this chapter. Sorry. More fun with Riley on its way, I promise! Oh, and a big thanks to all my reviewers!_

**Chapter Seven: The Treasure of the Underworld**

The next day Riley got a phone call from Ben asking him to be at his house that evening at seven. Riley said he would be there. He had no idea what to think now. Ben didn't seem to be mad about anything. In fact, he seemed surprised and almost happy about the bar incident. Well, happy with the part about Riley defending Ellen. Not so happy about the guy being a jerk to Ellen. Either way, Riley felt he was in the clear.

He arrived at Ben's house just before seven. He was walking up to the door when Ellen pulled into the driveway. Riley stopped to wait for her but she didn't see him at first. Ellen was far too busy singing her little heart out to whatever it was she was listening to. She turned her car off, and upon climbing out, she noticed Riley.

'Hi!' she said with a big smile.

'Hey,' Riley replied.

Ellen walked towards him, threw her arms around his neck and gave him a hug. Riley was caught off guard so he just stood there. Before his brain could tell him _hug her back, you idiot_ she let him go. They smiled at each other and began to walk up to the door.

'So, you made time for us tonight?' Riley asked.

'Yeah. I just had a teachers meeting earlier this afternoon…' she replied. Then she made a face to show just how boring it had been.

Riley laughed as they reached the door and let themselves in.

'Ben? Abi?' Riley called. 'We're here!'

Abi came around the corner into the kitchen. 'Oh, you came together!' she said.

'Oh, uh, no, we just ran into each other in the driveway,' Ellen replied.

'Oh… oh well,' Abi said, seemingly a bit disappointed. Ellen and Riley exchanged confused looks as Abi called out for Ben. 'Ellen and Riley are here!'

She gestured for them to follow her into the sitting room. 'Ben's been up there on his computer all day, researching the myth and the museums. Hopefully you'll be able to enlighten us,' Abi said to Ellen.

'Oh, I'm well familiar with the myth of Persephone, so hopefully I can be of some help.'

'Good, you both made it!' Ben said as he came into the room. He joined Abi on the couch opposite of Riley and Ellen.

'Okay, so what exactly is the myth of Persephone about?' Abi asked Ellen.

'Well, it's basically the story of this girl Persephone being kidnapped by Hades and then being tricked by Hades into staying with him for half of every year,' she began. The other three nodded to her, so she continued. 'Persephone was the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. Zeus had several children with women other than his wife Hera, and so Demeter knew that Persephone would be with her, Demeter, not her father. Everything was fine for a while, until Persephone grew up from a little girl into a beautiful woman. Hades, whose brother is Zeus, became infatuated with her and kidnapped her while she was picking flowers in a field – '

'Wait,' Riley interrupted. 'Hades became infatuated with his niece?'

'Yeah. Things were kind of different then. Plus they were gods, so they could do loads of things mortals wouldn't. But the fact that she was his niece was the least of the problems. Demeter, who could control the weather, got angry because she couldn't find Persephone. So she made it winter all over until she got Persephone back. Hades finally agreed to let Persephone go, but before she left, Hades offered her a seed to eat. She did, and in doing so, she bound herself physically to the Underworld, meaning she would have to stay. But because of Demeter's powers, and the fact that Persephone's father was Zeus, who may not have been the most involved parent but who would ultimately win a fight with Hades for Persephone's return, Hades agreed to let Persephone stay with her mother for six months out of every year. Demeter wasn't exactly thrilled, but she had to accept. Thus, the seasons were born. Summer and spring are for when Persephone is with Demeter, fall and winter are for when Persephone is with Hades.'

'What did Persephone think about all this?' Abi asked.

'Actually, she was angry and scared at first, but she grew to love Hades, despite what he'd done,' Ellen replied.

'Okay, I understand the myth now. But Stewart had mentioned something about other parts to the myth that may have been made up,' Ben said.

'Ah yes. The stones and the treasure of the underworld?'

'Yeah. What's that all about?' Ben asked.

'People came to know this myth by the stones that were found. The stones, called the Persephone Stones, tell the story I just told you. However, some mythologists and archaeologists believe that there are metals from the gods hidden inside these stones that tell the whereabouts of the Treasure of the Underworld. Zeus supposedly offered a massive treasure to Hades in exchange for him returning Persephone to Demeter. Hades took the treasure and promised Zeus he would return Persephone, but shortly after hiding the treasure, he offered Persephone the seed, thus breaking his promise to Zeus. Zeus demanded the treasure back, but Hades claimed that he held up his part of the bargain because he technically _did_ return Persephone. For how long she would remain with Demeter was never discussed between him and Zeus, so in fact Zeus could not take the treasure back. Apparently, these metals were inserted into the Persephone Stones by Zeus so that someone would eventually find them and take back the treasure from Hades.'

'Stewart seemed to be very much against this idea. What do you think about it?' Ben asked Ellen.

Ellen paused, thinking. 'Well, the stones are real enough, but whether or not they tell a true story or a fictitious myth is up for grabs. As a historian, I don't believe it. But…' she paused a smiled a little. 'It would be kinda cool if it were true.'

'Well, I wouldn't put a leap of faith past any Gates,' Riley murmured. The other three laughed, realizing that was true.

'Well, I would need some sort of proof that those metals existed before I believed in the treasure. But there's part of me that wants to believe in it,' Ellen admitted. 'But Ben, you mentioned something about scrolls?'

'Yeah, Stewart said that the curator at some museum in Athens is claiming that the scrolls we found and believed to be from the Library at Alexandria are actually from the Palace of Knossos and have something to do with the myth of Persephone.'

'What do the scrolls say?' Ellen asked.

'Stewart said no one can agree on a translation,' Riley answered. Ellen was silent for a few moments, thinking.

'Hm. That seems kind of odd, but there's so much speculation surrounding this myth, I wouldn't be too surprised if all this treasure business turned out to be true,' Ellen said.

----------------------------------------------------

About an hour later, Ellen and Riley got up to leave. They were almost out the door when Ben stopped them.

'I mentioned this to you yesterday,' he said, indicating Riley, 'I still have an odd feeling about all this. So, be careful. Both of you.'

They nodded. 'We will,' Riley said.

As the door closed, Abi turned to Ben.

'Ben, what do you mean by odd feeling?'

'I don't know. Stewart got done explaining everything to Riley and I yesterday, and I just got this bad feeling of foreboding… or foreshadowing, I'm not sure which.'

'About what?'

Ben paused. 'Ian.'

'Ian? What would Ian have to do with this?'

'Stewart said that this behavior is odd for the Athens museum curator. And this myth boils down to whether or not the treasure exists… doesn't that sound familiar to you?'

'Well, a bit. But I doubt Ian could steal those Persephone Stones and those scrolls from either museum.'

'Remember when you told me no one could possibly steal the Declaration of Independence?'

Abi paused. 'Maybe…'

Ben couldn't help but smile. 'I'm sure there's probably nothing to worry about. I've just got a bad feeling. It'll probably go away soon. In the meantime,' Ben said, pulling Abi close. 'We've got a wedding to plan.'


	8. Chapter 8

_I know, I know. I haven't updated this story in a long time. I apologize. I had finals and then a bad case of writer's block. Here are two chapters, and I swear I'll try to be better! Thanks for reading!_

**Chapter Eight: Baby's First Ice Cream Scoop**

'I'm downstairs,' Riley said into his cell phone.

'I'll be right down,' Ellen replied as she hung up, grabbed her jacket and left her apartment. She and Riley had to go and get wedding gifts for Ben and Abi. Riley had called her in a panic with no idea what to get them. She printed out their registry and said they could go together because she hadn't gotten them anything yet either.

It had been four months since the engagement announcement. Riley and Ellen had grown close over the past few months. They saw and called each other on a regular basis. They weren't any closer than friends, but there was clearly sexual tension. They were attracted to each other, but neither of them had made a move… yet….

Riley watched as Ellen emerged from her building and started towards his car. Their eyes met and she smiled at him, hopping over the door and into the seat of his convertible.

'Very nice!' Riley said. 'You've been practicing, I see.'

'You've taught me well,' Ellen replied.

''Taught me well' who…?'

'If you think I'm going to call you master, you're sorely mistaken.'

Riley laughed and smiled over at her.

At the next red light Ellen looked down at the papers she had in her hand. 'Well, a lot of the stuff on their registry has already been bought. So our choices come down to…' she scanned the papers. 'Crate and Barrel or…' she trailed off.

'Or what?'

'The National Museum of American History Store'

They both paused for a moment then started laughing.

'Only Ben and Abi would be registered at a history store,' Riley said.

'Where do you want to go?'

'Uh, Crate and Barrel.'

------------------------------------------------------------

'What is this thing?' Riley asked.

'What thing?'

'This thing.'

'A ladle.'

'No, not that, I know what that is. What is this tiny plastic ice cream scoop looking thing?'

'Baby's First Ice Cream Scoop.'

'What?' Pause. 'Really?'

'No, Riley. It's a Melon Baller.'

'A Melon what?'

'A Melon Baller. You use it to make little melon balls.'

'Why?'

'For fruit salads.'

'Do Ben and Abi need one?'

Ellen laughed at Riley's absolute incompetence at domestic activities. They walked around the store, finding things on Ben and Abi's list and they were currently looking for dinnerware but got sidetracked in the utensils section. Riley had no idea when it came to 'kitchen thingys' as he called them. (Actually, he called them 'women stuff' but changed it after Ellen hit him rather hard on the arm) Ellen wasn't much of a cook herself, but she knew a Melon Baller when she saw one.

'I don't think they need one. It's not – ' Ellen paused as she looked down at the list. 'Well, it is on the list, but no,' she said, taking it out of Riley's hand. 'We can do better than that.'

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

An hour later they emerged from the store, purchases in hand. They put their bags into the trunk.

As he got into the driver's seat, Riley asked, 'Any plans for the rest of the day?'

'Nope.'

'Wanna get some lunch?'

'Sure,' Ellen said, smiling at Riley.

'In the mood for anything?'

'No seafood.'

'Red Lobster, it is.'

Ellen playfully glared at Riley.

'Oh, you said _no_ seafood. I thought you said, "gee, I love seafood!"'

Ellen laughed. 'Riley, you're such a dork.'

'Joke's on you, you're my friend.'

'Touché.'

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They arrived back at Ellen's apartment an hour and a half later.

'It's still so early,' Ellen said, glancing at the clock on the dashboard, which read 3:18. 'You wanna come up for a bit?' she asked Riley.

Never missing a chance to be with Ellen, Riley said sure and he parked the car. He carried her bags upstairs for her as she unlocked the doors. They reached her door and as she was unlocking it, her neighbor from across the hall emerged from her apartment.

'Oooh, Ellen, who's your friend?' she asked in a scandalous tone. Ellen rolled her eyes at her. Riley turned to see a pretty young woman, about the same age as Ellen, standing in jeans and a somewhat revealing black top.

'This is Riley Poole. Riley, this is my neighbor – ' Ellen began.

'Morgan,' Morgan interrupted, shaking Riley's hand.

'Uh!' Ellen exclaimed. Riley looked at her confused, but Morgan just looked at her with a slight grimace/smile. Ellen looked at Riley. 'Morgana. That's her real name. Morgana, Goddess of the Whores.' Ellen said with a completely straight, and almost angry face.

Riley looked back and forth between the two women. They were glaring at each other and Riley had the sudden feeling that perhaps they did not get along. Then, they both began to laugh.

'Good one, Ellen. We're almost even,' Morgan said as she began to walk away.

'I'll get you, yet!' Ellen called out.

Morgan laughed. 'See you tomorrow?'

'Yeah. Eight o'clock!' Ellen answered as she opened the door and walked into her apartment, followed by a very confused Riley.

Ellen started taking her bag from Riley then saw the look of confusion on his face.

'I probably should explain that, shouldn't I?

'Yeah…. What was that about?'

'Morgan and I used to go to college together. She moved back home to Chicago after we graduated, but then she decided to move to DC. She ended up moving in right across the hall from me and neither of us knew it until she called me saying that she had moved back here and wanted to get together. I asked her where she lived and when she answered, I asked what apartment she was in. She told me and I hung up the phone and merely walked across the hall. So that's how I know her. The name thing is an inside joke we have. Every time we're together and one of us introduces the other to someone, one of us has to make up a name like that for the other. The only rule is we can only do it if we know we're not going to get the other person into trouble or anything. However, that rule was made up too late.'

'Too late?'

'Yeah, after I introduced Morgan to someone at a bookstore, and she asked him if he was aware my true name was Veronica, Queen of the Horny Ninjas. Which would have been funny, except for the fact that I was introducing her to my boss.'

Riley couldn't help but laugh. Ellen smiled a little. 'My boss is an ass, though, so I don't really care what he thinks about me. Although I still didn't want him to think I'm… weird. Needless to say, after that, the rule was established.'

'You've got some weird friends,' Riley said.

'Yeah, just look at you,' Ellen said with a smirk. Riley glared at her as she merely laughed and took her bag into her room.

'Hey, I know it's still a couple of months away, but I was wondering if you wrote your speech yet,' Riley said. Ellen was going to be the Maid of Honour at the wedding and Riley was to be Best Man. Which meant they both had to make a toast at the reception and Riley was a little more than worried about it.

'Yep,' Ellen said, emerging from her bedroom. Riley flopped down onto the couch.

'I have no idea what to say,' Riley sighed. Ellen sat down next to him.

'Don't worry about it. You'll think of something before the wedding,' she said with a smile.

'What are you saying in your toast?'

'Nothing in particular.'

'Oh, okay. That helped,' Riley said sarcastically.

Ellen laughed. 'Don't worry about it,' she repeated. 'Something will come to you.'

'I sure hope you're right.'

Just then, Ellen's cell phone rang. She got up and fumbled around in her purse for it as it sang _I don't blame you, for being you. But you can't blame me for hating it. So say what are you waiting for? Kiss her, kiss her. I set my clocks early cause you know, I'm always late. I don't blame you, for being you. But you –_ Riley was relieved when she finally answered it. He felt like Fall Out Boy was singing that to him as another reminder that he had yet to make a move with Ellen. And if he didn't make one soon, it might end up being too late.

'Hello?' Ellen said into her phone. Her smile faltered a little and she glanced at Riley. 'Oh, hi, Adam. How are you?' Pause. 'I'm fine, thanks.' Pause. 'Oh, you know what? I'd love to, but I can't.' Pause. 'I know. I've got a… previous engagement I really can't break.' Pause. She laughed. Riley immediately felt the pangs of jealousy. _Who the hell is Adam and how dare he make Ellen laugh! Jerk,_ Riley thought. 'Okay. Next time, definitely.' Pause. 'Okay you, too. See you Monday. Bye.' She closed her cell phone and threw it back into her purse.

'Anyway, what about your speech?' Ellen asked, hoping Riley wouldn't ask about Adam.

'Uh… I don't know what to say in it. Who's Adam?'

_Dammit._ Ellen thought. 'Just another teacher from the school. He keeps asking me to go out with him and the rest of the faculty for a drink. I went last weekend, but the principal is always there and I really don't like him, so I'd rather not go,' Ellen said, only lying a little.

'Is the principal the one who thinks you're Princess of the Angry Ninjas or whatever?'

'It's "Veronica, Queen of the Horny Ninjas", and yes, yes he is.'

'Why don't you like him?'

'He hates kids so I question why he chose to be a school principal. He also hates open mindedness, so I encourage my students to keep open minds and voice any independent thoughts they want to. And if those thoughts are said to the principal, all the better.'

Riley looked at her, clearly wondering if she had even gotten into trouble over that.

'Don't worry, my students don't say anything offensive or try to create anarchy or anything. I just encourage them to question authority rather than mindlessly follow rules. I don't want delinquents, but I don't want robots, either.'

'Makes sense,' Riley said, thinking about her reasoning.

Although part of his thoughts still lingered on that 'Adam' guy…. _You're going down, Adam,_ Riley thought to himself. He immediately thought about how ridiculous he was, but he couldn't help it. Maybe it was male instinct or just plain jealousy. Either way, he didn't want any other guy moving in on Ellen. He knew he technically didn't have any right to call those shots. Ellen was an adult and, more importantly, she was not his. Her cell phone ringer popped into Riley's head. _So say, what are you waiting for? Kiss her, kiss her. I set my clocks early cause you know, I'm always late_. Adam and Fall Out Boy now topped Riley's list of least favorite people.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine: Depp, McGregor, and Bloom**

Before they knew it, it was the night of the rehearsal. Ellen had called Riley, asking if he could come get her because her car was in the shop. He said he would, and that night he pulled up to her apartment building at 5:30. She buzzed him upstairs.

He knocked at her door. She opened it and smiled at him, letting him in. _That smile…_ Riley thought to himself.

'Almost ready?' he asked her.

'Yeah, just need my jacket.'

--------------------------------------------------------

The rehearsal went well. Riley was surprised to find himself nervous to walk Ellen down the aisle. He did fine _this_ time, but he knew he would trip or rip her dress or walk too fast tomorrow.

Plus, he just couldn't get Ellen out of his mind. He didn't know where the two of them stood. They weren't a couple, but they seemed to be more than friends. Not in a physical sense, but they both knew that they were close. They knew each other so well by now they could sense how the other person felt, what they were thinking, and what they were going to say. Ever since the first night they went out to that bar together, they hadn't gone more than a few days without speaking to each other. Sometimes Ben would need Ellen's help regarding her knowledge of mythology and Riley was usually with Ben at those times. Sometimes they would just call each other. Especially when Ellen was sitting around her office for an hour and a half when she didn't have a class to teach and she had to stay until the end of the school day.

Riley wasn't kidding himself. He wanted Ellen. Badly. But she was Ben's little sister, and therefore, off limits. But he just could not get her off his mind.

He must have looked preoccupied at the rehearsal dinner that night. Ellen leaned over and put her hand on his arm. He jumped a little.

'Riley, are you okay? You've been staring at your fork for about five minutes,' she said.

'Have I?' he asked.

'Uh – huh…' Ellen said, a little confused.

'Well… it's so shiny…' Riley said. Ellen paused for a moment, then laughed and shook her head.

'Never mind,' she said with a smile. He smiled at her smiling. _Good Lord, what's wrong with me?_ Riley asked himself.

-------------------------------------------------

Riley woke the next morning to his phone ringing. He lay sprawled out over his bed, tangled in the sheets. He got back to his place late. After dropping Ellen off at her apartment, he took a drive. He just had to clear his head. He met Ellen seven months previously, and he just didn't know what to think of her. Well, he knew what to think of _her_, he just didn't know what to think of _them_. Or even if there was a 'them'. He supposed there technically wasn't, but still…. He overheard Ellen telling Abi about Adam. Apparently Adam asked Ellen a few times to go out for a drink (without the rest of the teachers) and she turned him down every time. That made Riley smile… that is until Ellen went into a description of how attractive Adam was. Riley remembered her words exactly… _Picture a Johnny Depp, Ewan McGregor hybrid with Orlando Bloom's accent. _Riley stopped listening after that. How in the hell could he compete with Johnny Depp! Even Abi said she would go out with him.

Still, Ellen turned him down. That meant something, right? Riley didn't really meet enough girls in his daily life to have to turn down offers. Well, one girl (Riley noted she was an extremely hot blonde) asked to go get coffee with him, but he had made up an excuse to not go. As soon as she asked, an image of Ellen popped into Riley's head. So he turned her down. He knew he and Ellen weren't together, but he just couldn't image being with anyone else. Not that he imagined himself with Ellen. Oh, who was he kidding, _of course_ he imagined himself with Ellen. He imagined what it would be like to kiss her and touch her and hold her like he wanted to. But, all in vain…. Speaking of Ellen….

Riley rolled over and reached for his phone.

'Hello?' he croaked out.

'Good morning!' a cheerful voice rang out.

'Ellen?'

'Yep! This is your wake up call.'

'You know, I was just about to get up.'

Pause.

'Liar.'

'What? How do you know?'

'Because I know you, Riley. Now get your ass out of bed, put on your tux, maybe comb your hair, and come get me at 11.'

'Okay, okay. I'll be there at 11.'

'Okay, see you then!'

Riley heard her hang up. He put his phone back on his bedside table and collapsed back into the sheets. A second later the phone rang again. He clicked it on and heard,

'And don't you dare go back to sleep!' followed by the dial tone. Riley smiled to himself and climbed out of bed.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten: Forever Growing Love**

'Who is it?'

'It's me.' Riley heard the buzzer and opened the door to Ellen's apartment building. He reached her room on the third floor and knocked.

'It's open!' Ellen called.

Riley walked into her apartment, smiling at the familiar sight of her neat, cute place.

'Are you almost ready?' he called out.

'Yeah. Hey, is my purse in the living room somewhere?'

Riley walked further into the apartment and glanced around the room. He spotted a small black purse that had been flung onto her light blue couch. He went to get it when he heard Ellen enter the room behind him.

He picked it up and said, 'Yeah, your purse is right – .' He stopped short as he turned around and saw Ellen.

She stood in an elegant blueish – gray dress. It was tight on top, showing off her figure, while the bottom flowed out from her waist, sweeping the floor. Being a guy, Riley was quick to notice the rather low neckline and the way the straps hung of her shoulders. (He had a sudden flashback to standing in a kitchen and saying something dumb about knives…)

He must have been standing there with his face blank for a while because Ellen actually felt herself being to blush and her eyes fluttered to the floor. While she had been getting ready, her thoughts mainly lingered on the hope that Riley would think she looked nice. Apparently he did.

'Riley?'

'Huh?'

She smiled. 'Riley, you alright?'

Riley blinked and regained composure. 'Yeah, I'm…' he trailed off. 'You – you look great,' he said with a smile.

Ellen smiled back. 'Thanks. So do you,' she answered. She had definitely noticed how attractive Riley looked in a tuxedo.

'Ready, then?' Riley asked her.

'Yep,' Ellen answered, taking her purse from him and leading the way to the door.

------------------------------------

Three hours later Riley knocked on the door, behind which a very nervous Ben waited to be summoned.

'Ben?' Riley asked, opening the door. 'You ready?' (Riley could clearly see that Ben was not ready).

'Yeah. No. I mean, yes, but, no,' Ben rambled. Riley wasn't sure what to do here. He was not used to being the calm, rational one.

'Well, ready or not, it's time. Father Hoffman sent me to get you. Abi's safely hidden away so you won't see her.'

'How does she look?'

Riley smiled. It was the fifth time Ben had asked Riley that question.

'She looks beautiful, Ben,' Riley answered. Ben smiled.

'Thanks, Riley,' Ben said suddenly.

'For what?'

'Everything?' Ben said as more of a question than an answer. He and Riley looked at each other, both realizing this was one of those male bonding moments. Neither of them knew what to say, but luckily they were saved by a knock on the door. Without waiting for an answer to the knock, the door swung open to reveal Ellen.

'Ready, boys?' she said with a smiled, grabbing Ben's hand and pulling him from the room.

'I'm nervous!' Ben suddenly cried.

'I know,' Ellen said, leading him to a short hallway. 'Too bad,' she said with a smile. She quickly gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. 'You'll be fine.' She pointed to the first door.

Ben glanced at the door, then nodded and smiled at Ellen and Riley.

'Okay. See you two in there,' he said. He turned, took a deep breath, and walked to the door.

Ellen and Riley walked around the corner and down another short hallway to where Abi waited with her father and the rest of the wedding party, just to the side of the church doors.

'Ready?' Ellen asked Abi.

'I was. Then I heard the music start, and now I'm really nervous,' Abi answered.

Ellen smiled at her. 'Don't worry, you'll be just fine.' She gave the bride a quick hug as the Ring Bearer and Flower Girl began to walk down the aisle. Riley gave Abi a quick hug and reassuring smile as Ellen took his arm and they waited for their cue to start down the aisle.

Luckily, Ellen remembered the music cue and she tugged at Riley's arm. They emerged from behind the doors, pausing a few steps in for the photographer who quickly snapped a picture. Riley noticed Ben looked calm. But Riley knew Ben well enough to know that, usually, the calmer Ben _looked_ the more nervous he actually _was_. Ben smiled at Riley and Ellen. If he was indeed nervous, his smiled showed nothing but happiness.

Ellen released Riley's arm as they parted at the end of the aisle. Riley mentally congratulated himself for making it down the aisle in one piece.

---------------------------------

'Do you, Benjamin Gates, takes this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? Do you promise to love her and honor her until the end of your days?'

'I do.'

'And do you, Abigail Chase, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? Do you promise to love him and honor him until the end of your days?'

'I do,' Abi said through tears and with a smile.

'Then by the power invested in me, I pronounce you man and wife.' The priest looked at Ben. 'You may kiss your bride.'

Ben quickly pulled Abi close and kissed her as the congregation applauded. Riley glanced at Ellen to see her crying. But she grinned at him as she took his arm and they followed Ben and Abi back down the aisle.

----------------------------------

'Everyone, could we have your attention, please?' Ellen called out. She and Riley stood off to the right of the head dinning table where the wedding party sat. They deejay came up to them and handed a microphone to Riley. He immediately handed it off to Ellen. 'Oh, good,' she said, taking it. 'Everyone?' she said into the mic. Everyone turned and looked over to her and Riley, smiling. Ben and Abi beamed at them. Riley suddenly felt nervous and decided to let Ellen do most of the talking.

'Hello, everyone! On behalf on Ben and Abi and their families I welcome you to this joyous occasion. Riley and I would like to start this evening's celebration with our toasts to the happy couple.' Ellen paused as everyone made sure they had a champagne glass in hand.

'Clearly, I've known Ben longer than I've known Abi. And, even through the moments of typical older brother-ness, like when Ben tricked me into thinking I killed the tooth fairy… yeah, that was nice,' she paused as the crowd laughed. 'There were many, many more moments when I felt nothing but love from my brother. And even though I'm still kind of getting to know Abi, she feels like a sister to me, and I know she and Ben make the perfect match. Since they're known each other, I've seen their love do nothing but grow. And I'm sure their love for each other will continue to grow for the rest of their lives.' Ellen smiled at Ben and Abi and both women wiped away tears and Ellen handed the mic to Riley.

Riley took a deep breath and began.

'As with Ellen, I've known Ben longer than I've known Abi. And for that, I'm grateful –' the crowd murmured, a bit confused. 'Let me explain why!' Riley said quickly. Ben and Abi merely laughed, interested as to why Riley was glad to have not known Abi for very long. 'I knew Ben for a year prior to him meeting Abi. So, I knew the Ben that existed before Abi was in his life. And while that was still a happy, content Ben, he was not nearly as happy and alive as the Ben of today. He truly came completely to life after meeting Abi. And, as Ellen said, their love has done nothing but grow since then, as we are all sure it will continue to do.' Many sniffles were heard around the room. 'So,' Riley said, raising his glass. Everyone followed suit. 'To Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin and Abigail Gates, and their forever growing love for each other.' Everyone toasted Ben and Abi and clapped as they shared a kiss.

Riley felt Ellen snake her arm behind his back.

'That wasn't so hard, was it?' she said, looking up at him. He smiled and placed his arm around her.

'Wasn't exactly easy, though,' he said.

She laughed. 'It was a good speech,' she said with a smile.

'Thanks.' Riley suddenly had an urgent and overwhelming feeling to kiss her as he looked into her eyes, still misty from tears. He only half gave into the urge, planting a soft kiss on her forehead. She closed her eyes and sighed, happy for at least this moment, but hoping there would be more to come.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven: Care to Dance?**

'Having fun?'

Riley jumped a bit at the voice next to him. He looked at the source of it and felt himself automatically smile. Ellen was looking up at him with a half smile, half questioning look.

'Yeah. Just needed a drink,' he replied.

Ellen looked at him a little concerned. 'Are you okay?'

Realizing how that sounded, Riley explained. 'No, I mean, I'm fine. It's nothing like that. I just got cornered by Stewart again….'

'Ah,' Ellen said, suddenly understanding. 'He's such a nice man… too bad he's so boring. How long were you-?'

'Long enough for me to need a drink.' Ellen laughed a little, then her face suddenly changed.

'I love this song! Come on, let's dance,' she cried, pulling on Riley's arm.

'What? No. No, no, no,' Riley protested.

'Oh, please?'

'I, uh – I don't dance. I can't.'

'But-' Ellen was interrupted by one of Riley's co-workers, Richard.

'Miss Gates, are you in need of a dance partner?' he asked.

'Uh…' she glanced at Riley, and then put her drink down on the bar and said, 'Sure. I'd love to dance.' Richard grabbed her hand and she flounced off to the dance floor.

Riley was determined not to turn around to see them. But he found his body doing just that. He soon found that his mouth had fallen open as he watched Ellen on the dance floor. She was amazing. He found himself captivated by the way she moved her shoulders and the way she swayed her hips. She smiled and laughed as she twirled around Richard. Riley, who had never felt one way or the other about Richard, suddenly hated him.

'Didn't know she could dance, did you?'

Riley turned to see Ben next to him.

'Uh, no, I didn't.'

'She wanted to be a dancer until she took a class in the History of Ancient Greece.'

Riley laughed. 'She's a Gates, through and through.'

Ben laughed then said, 'Shouldn't it be you, though, on the floor with her?'

'She tried to drag me, but – wait. What?'

'Huh?'

'What did - what do you mean?'

'Oh, come on, Riley. I'm not blind. There's obviously something between you two.'

'What!' Riley cried, hoping Ben was joking. 'There's nothing between us. She's your sister, man!'

'I know. And if it were up to me, she'd be locked in a room until she's 40. But she's gonna be with someone, and I know I'd rather she'd… you know….' Ben trailed off and nodded pointedly at Riley. Riley furrowed his brow as they both turned back to the dance floor. Richard spun Ellen around and she caught Riley's eye. She winked then spun back to Richard. As they danced, Ellen looked at Riley and mouthed some of the words to him '… last dance for me.' Riley smiled slightly to himself as she finished dancing. After the song ended, Richard and Ellen walked back to the bar, laughing.

'Ben, your sister's a terrific dancer,' Richard said.

'Oh, I know,' Ben said, smiling at her. She smiled back then glanced at Riley, who was smiling at her. She smiled bigger, and Riley swore he saw her blush a little.

----------------------------------------------------------------

'All right, folks. This is it – the last dance of the night. Grab that special someone and come on down to the dance floor,' the deejay said as he began to play the last slow tune. (Appropriately enough, Michael Buble's 'That's All') Abi promptly grabbed Ben and they began to dance.

Without having to turn around, Riley felt someone behind him. That someone pulled at his sleeve, and he turned to see Ellen looking up at him.

'Yes?' he playfully asked, as she took his hand.

'I warned you. The last dance was mine,' Ellen said, dragging him to the dance floor.

Riley sighed. 'I don't dance. Dance with Richard.'

'I don't want to dance with Richard. I want to dance with you. And besides, I dance well enough for both of us.'

Riley couldn't help but laugh a little as they reached the floor and she turned to him, draping one arm around his neck as he took her right hand. He put his other arm around her waist, pulling her close. They swayed in time to the music together.

'See? This isn't so bad,' Ellen said, smiling up at him.

'I didn't say _this_ would be bad. I said _I_ was bad,' Riley corrected her. She laughed. _Now's the time_, Riley thought to himself. He had wanted to tell her something all night, and now he finally had the chance.

'Ellen?'

'Yes?'

'Um… I just wanted to… I mean…' he shook his head and tried again as Ellen smiled a little. Riley took another breath, looked her straight in the eyes and said, 'you look _unbelievably_ beautiful tonight.'

Ellen's mouth opened a bit. That caught her off guard. She tried to speak but her voice caught in her throat.

'I mean, you always look beautiful, but… tonight you look amazing,' Riley said.

Ellen finally found her voice and she said, 'Thank you, Riley.' She also finally figured out how to work her face and she smiled up at him. Riley noticed it was a bit different smile than she usually had. Different in a good way, however. He smiled back. They held each other's gazes for a while then Ellen leaned her head against his chest. Riley instinctively tightened his arms around her. He held her right hand in his left and brought it up to his chest, holding it against him. She tightened her grip on his hand and sighed.

Abi happened to look over while she was dancing with Ben. She smiled to herself at the sight of Riley and Ellen. _That's a start,_ she thought to herself.

-------------------------------------------------

'We'll take care of everything,' Riley said to Ben after everyone said goodbye and left.

'Are you sure?' Ben asked.

'Yes. You two go. Have… fun…' Riley trailed off, not looking Ben in the eye. Ben laughed. 'Ellen and I will handle everything.'

Ben glanced at Abi, who was saying goodbye to her parents. 'Ok. I should go say goodbye to the in-laws.'

He walked away as Patrick Gates walked up to Riley with Ellen.

'Are you sure?' he was asking Ellen.

'Yes, Dad. You can go, Riley and I will take care of everything left.'

'Yeah, Mr. Gates. There's not much left to do anyway,' Riley added.

Patrick Gates sighed. 'All right. I'm an old man who should get to bed anyway.'

Riley and Ellen were left alone after the many goodbyes between them, Ben and Abi, Abi's parents, and Mr. Gates. They made sure the deejay got all his stuff along with his check, they paid the caterer, and checked out at the front desk.

They stepped outside and Ellen immediately paused to take off her shoes. She groaned as she placed her feet back on the ground.

'I've been dying to take these off,' she said in reply to Riley's questioning look.

'Then why did you wear them all night?'

'Cuz they're really sexy shoes.'

Riley shook his head. 'Women,' he muttered to himself. He laughed as Ellen playfully swatted him on the arm. She started to walk towards Riley's car, when Riley stopped her.

'Wait. You shouldn't walk through the parking lot without shoes on. There's probably glass or something around.'

'Your car's not that far away,' Ellen replied, gesturing to Riley's car, which was in fact, very far away. She paused, considering the distance then sighed as she bent down to put her shoes back on.

'Oh, come here,' Riley said. He bent over and swooped her up. She shrieked a little, as she was not expecting it, and locked her arms around Riley's neck, laughing.

'Riley! What are you doing?'

'Being a gentlemen.'

They both laughed as Riley began to walk to the car, carrying Ellen.They reached his car and he set her down on the passenger side. He got out his keys and opened the door for her. After she got in, he walked around and got into the driver's seat.

'You're okay to drive, right?' Ellen asked.

'Yeah. My last drink was like, four hours ago,' he replied as he started the car.

As they drove away, Ellen looked at the clock on the dashboard. It read 3:45am.

'Holy Lord! It's almost four in the morning!'

'Hm,' Riley said, realizing for the first time that he wouldn't get home until close to five in the morning. 'Oh, well,' he said.

'You're going to get home so late! By the time you drop me off and get back to your place it's going to be five in the morning!'

'That's okay.'

'Oh, Riley, that's so late. I wouldn't feel comfortable with you driving all the way back to your place after dropping me off.'

'O – okay…' Riley said, not knowing where she was going with this.

'You should stay at my place.'

Riley almost jerked the car off the road.

'What!' he cried.

'What?' she asked. 'It would just be easier. That way you can drive back tomorrow morning or afternoon.'

'I can't stay at your place!'

'What? Why not?'

'Ben would kill me!'

'What? Oh – Riley. _If_ Ben even finds out, he'll understand. And it's not like you're staying over to… you know….'

They had a slightly awkward moment where they glanced at each other, then promptly looked out the windshield.

After a pause, Riley said, 'Well, I guess I could crash on the couch.'

'I've got two bedrooms, you can sleep in the second one.'

'You've got two bedrooms?'

'Yeah.'

'All the times I've been to your apartment and I never noticed that.'

Ellen tried to stop herself, but the look of utter confusion on his face was too much for her and she burst out laughing. After a while, he started laughing too and whatever awkward moment they had passed.

Although the thought of what Ellen meant by '… you know...' lingered in both their minds.

----------------------------------------------------

They arrived at Ellen's building just before 4:30. They sleepily made their way up to her apartment. She lead him down the short hallway that lead to her bedroom. She stopped at the door across from the bathroom and turned on the light.

'Here,' Ellen said, stepping into the room to make room for Riley. 'You need anything?' she asked him.

'No, I think I'm fine.'

Ellen yawned. 'Okay. I'm going to sleep then. I'll probably see you in the afternoon by the time we get up.'

Riley laughed and they smiled at each other for a few moments.

'Well, goodnight Riley,' Ellen said.

'Goodnight Ellen,' Riley replied. She turned to her room as Riley turned to his, a bit put off that her guest bedroom was larger than his living room. 'I'm a millionaire, why is my apartment so small?' he said aloud to himself.


End file.
